Reserve bobbin magazine for looms



Dec. 9, 1952 R. e. TURNER RESERVE BOBBIN MAGAZINE FOR LOOMS Filed Dec. 9, 1950 ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 9, 1952 RESERVE BOBBIN MAGAZINE FOR LOQMS Richard G. Turner, Worcester, Mass, assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application December 9, 1950, Serial No. 200,015

7 Claims.

This invention relates to weft replenishing looms more particularly of the bobbin changing type and it is the general object of the invention to provide improved transferring mechanism adaptable more particularly to the transfer of partly wound bobbins.

In the weaving of certain fabrics it is not permissible to use weft containing knots and because of this requirement the winding operation of the bobbins is stopped it the thread breaks even though only a small amount of weft has been wound on the bobbin. When such bobbins are placed in a magazine in which they feed by gravity toward a transfer position their tips can engage each other and the weft on the bobbin adjacent to the bobbin in transfer position will be in the path of the transferrer hammer or arm. When this condition exists the transfer arm is likely to damage the weft with a resultant blemish in the fabric.

It is an important object of the present invention to provide a transferrer arm or hammer so made that it will enga e the butt and tip of a bobbin being transferred but will be so constructed that no part of it can engage the yarn on the adjacent bobbin.

It is a further object of the invention to p vide a transferrer hammer with butt and tip engaging feet connected by a part located at such a height that it cannot engage the weft of a bobbin adjacent to the bobbin being transferred when the transferrer arm is in its lowest'position.

It is customary to provide the transferrer arm with two feet both of which are on the same side of the bobbin tip support. When the tip support and the feet are thus located they cause two turning moments to be exerted in the same direction on the bobbin being transferred tending to tip or displace the bobbin angularly. It is a further object of the invention to locate the bobbin tip support between the feet of the transferrer arm so that the turning moments are in opposite directions, thereby reducing the tendency to tip the bobbin when it is transferred.

Heretofore I have proposed bobbin tip supports mounted on the inside of the tip end plate of the reserve bobbin magazine. The end plate has a continuous bottom edge to guide the threads extending from reserve bobbins to a thread holder. In order that the tip foot or heel of the transferrer arm may engage the bobbin at a point close to the end plate it is a further object of the invention to mount the bobbin tip supports on the outside of the end plate and extend them through a slot in the plate above the aforesaid continuous bottom edge to points inside the magazine spaced from the tip engaging foot of the transferrer arm.

With these and other objects in iew which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention s des in he combina i n and arrangem n p c d th i vention resides in the comi ion and arrang ment of parts hereinafter described and set forth.

In the acc mpanyin drawings, wherein a convenient embodiment of the invention is set forth.

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of part of a weft replenishing loom having the invention applied thereto, the lay, shuttle box and shuttle being shown in section,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged front elevation looking in the direction of arrow 2, Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a vertical section on line 3-3, Fig. 2

Figs. 4 and'5 are detailed horizontal sections on lines 44 and 5-5, respectively, Fig. 3,

Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic view showing the manner in which the transferrer arm moves a full bobbin from the magazine'into a shuttle without engaging the adjacent bobbin,

Fig. 7 is a diagrammatic view looking in the direction of arrow 1, Fig. 6,

Fig. 8 is a'view similar to Fig. 6 but showing bobbins which are partly filled, and

Fig. 9 is a diagrammatic view'lookin in the direction of arrow 9, Fig. 8,

Referring to the drawings, the loom frame I has a stationary support 2 on which a reserve bobbin magazine M is pivoted at 3. The magazine has front and. back stacks 4 and 5 of reserve bobbins between an inside butt end plate 6 and an outer tip end plate 1. The inner plate 6 has front and back bobbin butt guideways 8 and 9, and a yielding bobbin butt support ID at the bottom of each'guideway, only one of these supports being shown in Fig. 2.

The outer end plate 7 has front and back bobbin tip guideways H and I2, respectively, guideway ll being between flanges I3 and '14 projecting laterally from a wall 15 and guideway 12 being between flanges l6 and lT'con nected to an outer wa1l'l'8. The lower ends of walls [5 and {8 are integral with a wall I9 extending across the bottom of end plate I, and the lower ends of the guideways'l I and 12 are formed as downwardly'inclined'bobbin tip runs it and 2 I, respectively. The extreme lower ends of flanges it and I! are indicatedat 22 and 23, respectively.

Rotatably mounted on the lower ends of flanges l3 and [6 are bobbin tip supporting rolls 24 and 25, respectively. A stud 26 secured to wall l9 on the outer side thereof, or on the side opposite to the flanges l3, l4 and I6, I1, has pivoted thereon bobbin tip supports 30 and 3| for the guideways II and I2, respectively. These supports have secured thereto horizontal parts or studs 32 and 33, respectively, projecting through a slot 34 in wall [9. The inner ends of studs 32 and 33 have rotatably mounted thereon bobbin tip supporting rolls 35 and 36, respectively, which, as shown in Fig. 4, are spaced inwardly from wall l9. The rolls 24 and 35 define between them a discharge mouth 31 for the tip Tl of the lowest bobbin in the front stack, and similarly rolls 25 and 36 define a discharge mouth 38 for bobbin tip T2, see Fig. 3. The slot 34 is above and does not interrupt the continuous bottom edge 39 of wall 19 which serves as a guide for weft ends W extending from the magazine to a thread holder (not shown).

Each support 30 and 31 has a lateral arm 46 provided with an adjustable stop screw 4| engaging one end of a spring 42 the other end of which is anchored as at 43. The springs hold their respective bobbin tip supports in bobbin tip supporting position, but yield to permit widening of the mouth corresponding to the tip of a bobbin being transferred. The screws engage stops 44 extending outwardly from and fixed to wall 19, see Fig. 5. A lug 45 on the inner side of wall 9 extends between the lower ends of the bobbin tip runs 20 and 2| and limits movement of the lowest bobbin tips in the runs.

The transferrer arm or hammer is pivoted on a stud 5| supported by the stand 2 and has the usual latch 52 which is raised into the path of a hunter 53 on the lay L when a bobbin transfer is to occur. The lay has a shuttle box 54 for a shuttle S containing a bobbin 55 which when depleted of weft will be replaced by a bobbin corresponding to it from the magazine. Looms of the type shown herein generally operate with two shuttles only one of which is shown herein.

The magazine M is ordinarily in a stationary position with the lowest bobbin in one of the stacks in transfer position. As shown in Fig. l the lowest bobbin in the front stack, corresponding to shuttle S, is in transfer position, but if the other shuttle (not shown) is to be replenished the magazine will be rocked about stud 3 until the lowest bobbin in the rear stack is in transfer position. This rocking is effected by a rod 56 connected to lever 51 operatively connected to a depending rod 58 leading to well known mechanism. It should be understood that certain features of the present invention are not limited to a multicolor loom or magazine such as shown herein.

The transferrer arm has a bobbin butt engaging foot 60 having its lower end adapted for engagement with the butt 6| of a bobbin in transfer position. The front and back faces 62 and 63, respectively, of the foot 60 are concentric with the stud 5! to engage the butts of the next to the lowest bobbins in the stacks during a bobbin changing operation to prevent them from moving into transfer position until the transferrer arm returns to its normal raised position after a transfer.

The transferrer arm has a bobbin tip engaging foot 65 the front and back faces 66 and 61 of which are concentric with stud 5|. The foot 65 is of a thickness preferably although not necessarily somewhat less than the diameter of a bobbin tip, see Fig. 6. The top of foot 65 is connect- 4 ed to the top of foot 60 by a joining member ID preferably of less thickness than that of foot 65. The member 10 may be integral with the feet 60 and 65, but in any event will hold the foot 65 rigid relative to foot 60. The member I0 is high enough on the transferrer arm so that when the latter is in its lowest position the member will be above the weft on the bobbin next adjacent to the one being transferred.

The tip foot 65 is positioned on the transferrer arm so that it will engage the extreme tip end of the bobbin, preferably between wall l9 and the rolls 24, 35, or 25, 36. By this relation the bobbin tip supports will engage the bobbin between the parts of it which are engaged by the feet 60 and 65 and will exert a force tending to hold the ends of the bobbin up against their respective feet at the beginning at least of a transferring operation and prevent or lessen the tendency of the bobbin to tip or be angularly displaced during transfer. The transferrer arm is so made that the only parts of it which can engage a bobbin in transfer position and the bobbin adjacent to it are the feet, and the latter never engage the packages or masses of weft wound which are located between the butts and tips of the bobbins.

As shown in Fig. 5 the lower end 22 of flange I4 is formed with a notch or open slot 15 for passage of foot 65. Similarly, part 23 of flange I1 is formed with a notch or open slot 16. The short fingers H of the flange ends 22 and 23 extend over the bobbin tips TI and T2 to prevent substantial upward displacement of the latter. These fingers may however be omitted.

Assuming that all the bobbins in the magazine are provided with full supplies of weft their tips will be spaced as shown in Fig. '7. As the transferrer arm 50 descends to transfer the lowest bobbin Bl in stack 4 the foot 60 will engage the butt and foot 65 the tip of the bobbin and move the latter down into the shuttle S without engaging any part of the mass of Weft Wl on bobbin Bl. When the transferrer arm 50 is in its lowest position the member 10 will be above the weft W2 of bobbin B2 and will not be able to engage the weft W2, see Fig. 6. -When bobbin Bl leaves the magazine bobbin 132 will try to move by gravity toward transfer position, but its butt and tip will engage the front faces 62 and 66, respectively, and be held back until the transferrer arm nears its normal raised position, whereupon bobbin B2 will fall onto the butt and tip supports. Lug 45 will prevent overtravel of the tip of bobbin B2.

For reasons already stated the bobbins may not all be provided with full supplies of weft and may be only partly filled. It is assumed in Fig. 9 that bobbin B3 is in transfer position and is wound with a short package or mass W3 of weft. The next bobbin B4 may have a larger weft supply W4 which will extend partly at least into the space around bobbin B3 which would be occupied by weft if bobbin B3 were full. As shown in Fig. 8, however, it will be seen that the transferrer arm can transfer bobbin B3 without touching the weft W4 and the latter will not be damaged because the member 10 will not move down far enough to engage it.

If the magazine should be rocked to effect transfer of the lowest bobbin in the other stack conditions of transfer will exist similar to those already described.

Bobbin magazines are generally equipped with some form of thread holder for the weft ends of the reserve bobbins. Because of the difficulty in threading a shuttle freshly replenished with a partly filled bobbin it is desirable to have the thread holder located favorably for shuttle threading at the time of picking, as shown for instance in my prior Patent No. 2,531,177 issued November 21, 1950.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the invention sets forth an improved form of transferrer arm or hammer having bobbin butt and tip engaging feet connected together by a part which is sufficiently high so that it is never able to engage the weft of the bobbin adjacent to the bobbin bein transferred. Because of the form of the transferrer arm the magazine can operate successfully with bobbins which are only partly filled with Weft and there is no danger that a bobbin adjacent to a small mass of weft being transferred will be damaged. It will also be seen that the bobbin tip support, or the Part of it at least which has direct engagement with the bobbin tip, is intermediate the butt and tip engaging feet of the transferrer arm so that oppositely directed turning forces are exerted on the bobbin being transferred tendin to prevent the latter from being tipped or displaced angularly from its correct position. These opposite forces tend to hold the butt and tip of the bobbin being transferred against their respective feet on the transferrer arm. Furthermore, the bobbin tip supports are mounted on the outside of the wall 19 and extend through a slot 34 which is located entirely above and does not interrupt the continuous bottom edge 39 of wall 19 which serves as a guide for the weft ends extending from the lowest bobbins in the magazine. The feet on the transferrer arm engage only those parts of the bobbin lying at the opposite ends of the mass of weft on the bobbin, and. the bobbin tip support preferably engages the tip end of the bobbin Without engaging the Weft on it.

Having thus described the invention it will be seen that changes and modifications of the foregoing specific disclosure may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed as new is:

1. In a reserve bobbin magazine having a Weft carrying bobbin provided with a butt and tip in transfer position, a transferrer arm having a butt foot to engage the bobbin butt and a tip foot to engage the bobbin tip during a bobbin transferring operation, and a yielding support for the tip of the bobbin engaging the latter intermediate said feet and resisting downward motion of the bobbin during the transferring operation and cooperating with said feet to exert oppositely directed turning forces on the bobbin tendin to hold the latter against said feet.

2. In a reserve bobbin magazine having an end plate for the tips of bobbins which move toward a transfer position, a bobbin tip engaging wall forming part of said end plate, and a bobbin tip support pivoted on said wall on the side thereof opposite the bobbin tips, said Wall having a continuous thread guiding edge along the under side thereof and having a slot therethrough above said edge, said support extending through said slot into position to engage the tip of a bobbin in transfer position.

3. In a reserve bobbin magazine having a bobbin tip end plate the lower end of which is provided with a wall the lower end of which is formed with a thread guiding edge, the tip of a bobbin in transfer position being adjacent to one side of said wall, and a bobbin support pivotally mounted on said wall on the opposite side of the latter, said wall having an opening therethrough above said guide edge and said support extending through said opening and beyond said one side of said wall for engagement with the tip of a bobbin in transfer position.

4. In a weft replenishing mechanism, a reserve bobbin magazine having an end plate formed with a bobbin tip engaging wall provided with a continuous thread guide edge on the under side thereof for the weft end of a bobbin in transfer position of the magazine, said end plate having an opening therethrough above said thread guide edge, and a bobbin tip support pivoted on the outer side of said wall and having a part thereof extending through said opening and beyond the latter to a position to engage the tip of a bobbin in transfer position at a point spaced from said Wall.

5. In a reserve bobbin magazine having a bobbin in transfer position and a thread extending from the bobbin to a thread holder, said magazine having a bobbin tip end plate formed with a wall provided on the under side thereof with a continuous guiding edge for said thread intermediate said bobbin and the thread holder, said wall having an opening therethrough above said edge, a stud secured to the outer side of said wall extending in the direction toward the thread holder, a bobbin tip support pivoted on said stud and extending through said opening in a direction away from said thread holder to have engagement with the tip of the bobbin in transfer position at a point on the side of said wall opposite to the thread holder.

6. In a reserve bobbin magazine having a bobbin in transfer position, an end plate for bobbin tips forming part of the magazine, said end plate having on the under side thereof a continuous thread guiding edge for the weft end of the bobbin and said plate having an opening therethrough above said edge, a transferrer arm having a tip engaging foot to engage the tip of the bobbin adjacent to said end plate, and a bobbin tip support pivoted on the outside of said end plate and extending through said opening and engaging the tip of the bobbin at a point beyond said tip engaging foot of the transferrer arm.

7. In a reserve bobbin magazine having a bobbin tip end plate and a bobbin in transfer position on one side of said plate and a thread holder on the opposite side of said end plate for the weft end of the bobbin, said end plate having a guiding edge for said weft end on the under side thereof and an opening therethrough above said edge, a stud extending from said opposite side of said end plate, a bobbin tip support pivoted on said stud and extending through said opening to engage the bobbin at a point spaced beyond said end plate with reference to said thread holder, and a transferrer arm having a tip engaging foot to engage the bobbin tip intermediate said point and said end plate.

RICHARD G. TURNER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 591,998 Burton Oct. 19, 1897 2,381,725 Darwin Aug. 7, 1945 2,474,641 Turner June 28, 1949 2,519,817 Bergstrom Aug. 22, 1950 

